All posts in category Sciences

Your premium brand had better be delivering something special, or it’s not going to get the business. ~ Warren Buffett

Red Bull, sponsor of Felix Baumgartner’s record breaking supersonic freefall over Roswell, New Mexico, accomplished a marketing tour de force recently, over 8 million views live online. A longtime enthusiast of extreme sports, Red Bull takes its marketing a step further embodying the very essence of its brand. As Miles O’Brien noted during a PBS Newshour interview, “It’s 21st century marketing brilliance. Red Bull has cracked the code.” O’Brien went on to commend the energy drink maker’s ability to reach a mass audience while sidestepping traditional marketing channels, with its successful Mission to the Edge of Space.

Deemed one of The World’s 50 Most Innovative by Fast Company, Red Bull Media House, the content division of Red Bull, has succeeded in making its mark in the new media landscape. As Teresa Iezzi reports, the company has focused on perfecting its web and mobile outlets and teaming up with YouTube to present original content. Managing Director Werner Brell insists Red Bull has always placed an emphasis on photographing every aspect of its brand’s storytelling via action sports. Iezzi also indicates the best approach branding with a creative blueprint in mind. By extension, Red Bull has succeeded in being social from the start, engaging with its customers on Facebook and Twitter.

So, which brands do you interact with online? What do you like about them? Share your thoughts about the brands in sync with your lifestyle.

Social media provides a way for space enthusiasts to connect, notes NASA’s Veronica McGregor. This is not the first time NASA has employed social media to highlight a space mission. As she reported to Dorrine Mendoza of CNN, the Phoenix Mars Lander’s Twitter account was the fifth most followed in 2008. Interest in space abounds; the Mars Curiosity’s landingtweet at 1:32 am EST on August 6th was retweeted 70,000 times around the world. Moreover, Linda Holmes of NPR observes Curiosity on Twitter has found its voice, the right mix of science and engagement.

After all, the sky’s the limit for space exploration, and we owe a debt of gratitude to the pioneers of space who make it all possible. Recently we lost one of the greats Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon. Twitterers can post comments and photos using the hashtag #WinkAtTheMoon to honor the acclaimed astronaut of the Gemini and Apollo space missions. We look forward to the launch of the Webb Telescope and all future giant leaps of space.

So, how do you follow your curiosity about space? What’s your favorite extraterrestrial pursuit? Share your thoughts on exploring space with social media.

Anyone who has traveled across the Golden Gate Bridge on a sunny day is taken aback by the breathtaking experience. And although this past Sunday the architectural gem turned 75, for me, the Bridge will always represent the epitome of the best of what art and science coming together have to offer, in this case an Art Deco masterpiece made possible by an engineering tour de force.

The Golden Gate Bridge is an American icon, notes Spencer Michels of PBS. Open to the public originally on May 27, 1937; many feel it symbolizes an eternal optimism. One only has to visualize its vibrant International Orange hue in tune with its surroundings, coupled with the virtual connection of the San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean to share in this feeling. Structurally, the single-span suspension bridge was built to withstand the test of time; form follows functionin effect to weather the elements. No doubt appreciation of its eternal beauty will continue. The 75th celebration included a photo contest on Facebook, endearing the Gate to another generation.

So, what’s your favorite bridge? What are the benefits of art and science teaming up? The Golden Gate has succeeded in capturing our hearts and minds; let’s hope the Bridge and the beauty it represents endure for the next 75.

This is perhaps the most beautiful time in human history; it is really pregnant with all kinds of creative possibilities made possible by science and technology which now constitute the slave of man – if man is not enslaved by it. ~ Jonas Salk

A new technology sometimes creates more than it destroys. Sometimes, it destroys more than it creates. But it is never one-sided. ~ Neil Postman

Watching Margaret Warner’s recent interview of Mark Bowden, author of “Worm: The First Digital World War,” on PBS’ Newshour got me thinking … have we as a society gained more than we have lost as a result of the digital age? The book conversation illustrates the pitfalls of “the Wild West period of the Internet,” namely computer security issues – botnet, malware, and viruses.

As noted in my earlier post “The Power of Collaboration,” filmmaker Tiffany Shlain advances society has benefited from the Internet’s capablity to foster innovation and collective problem solving. On the other hand, we’ve lost some of the niceties of the analog era, in-person interactions, deep thought, not being “on” 24-7, etc.

Can we have the best of both worlds – the digital and the analog? Or as writer Neil Postman suggests, is there is a clear victor – society’s gained more, or lost more? Share your thoughts on the positives and the negatives of technology in the digital age.

To raise new questions, new possibilities, to regard old problems from a new angle, requires creative imagination and marks real advance in science. ~ Albert Einstein

Collaboration has long been the hallmark of the scientific process. Filmmaker Tiffany Shlain (director of the new film “Connected”) provides a recent example during an interview on PBS’ Tavis Smiley.

Online gamers, playing Foldit, modeled the structure of an enzyme beneficial for future anti-AIDS drug development, accomplishing in a matter of weeks what had long perplexed University of Washington scientists. As Tiffany herself points out, the Internet provides a surefire catalyst for innovation, a global framework for bringing together varying perspectives, which in turn “the hope is” leads to collaborative problem solving.

Share your thoughts on the power of collaboration to foster innovation and problem solving.

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science. ~Albert Einstein

Welcome. Imagine… a journey filled with the many splendid wonders of art and science, against the backdrop of a marketing perspective. Join me on my quest to strive for “marketing nirvana” by deepening the appreciation of the arts, the sciences, and all things marketing. So sit back, relax, and share your favorite artist, scientist, quote, or musing.

I look forward to connecting with you, my fellow voyagers, on our journey of enlightenment.